An Obsidian Heart
by Vince Stevens
Summary: AU fic (all will be explained). Duo goes into the fight of his life and comes back changed. What will happen when the God of Death learns of his obsidian heart? I don't own Gundam Wing!
1. The Shinigami lives again

An Obsidian Heart 

A black shadow loomed over the L2 colony cluster. Duo Maxwell surveyed the space around his home colony from the cockpit of Deathscythe Hell. Massive amounts of defeated Mobile Doll troops floated in a small orbit around the space colony. Duo looked in disgust as he surveyed the wreckage.  
"Will they NEVER learn?" Duo only sighed as he began the journey back into L2.

The World Nation, now led by the corrupt Milliardo Peacecraft, had been relentlessly pursuing the remaining Gundam pilots. With the destruction of the Gundam Wing Zero and the death of Heero Yuy...Trowa, Quatre, Wufei and Duo all returned to their respective colonies in order to better defend their homes. Wufei, whose home had been destroyed during the war between OZ (the Romafeller Foundation) and the White Fang chose to return with Trowa to the circus. Trowa finally recovering his memory and the no-nonsense attitude he used during his missions on Earth, returned to work and his surrogate family. Wufei began his tenure at the circus doing a human cannonball/trapeze act while Trowa and Kathryn returned to their knife throwing act. Quatre returned to one of the Winner family's many resource satellites protecting his sisters and the colony from the World Nation's forces. With the Gundams now the only thing protecting the colonies from the World Nation's/White Fang's domination, the same people who had shunned them only months earlier were now embracing the Gundams once again with open arms.

Despite the outcome of the war, Treize Khushrenada found a way to persevere through Romafeller's tragic defeat. Using his vast resources and charismatic personality, Treize bought one of the Winner family's resource satellites in an effort to decrease his overall stature and hide from the White Fang troops still occupying space. This move had backfired and his satellite was the target of many White Fang attacks. Relena Peacecraft, immediately following Heero's death, locked herself away in order to greive for the loss of the only man she ever truly loved. It took her a long time to realize that Heero's death meant more than just another assassination of her loved ones; his death meant that her idealistic world of total pacifismmust be fought for in order for this world to be acheived. Andshe would be the one to do it. Since both of Heero's Gundams had been destroyed, Relena turned to the one person who knew both her and Heero, and had the genius to construct what she wanted: Dr. J. She asked him to construct a Gundam and show her how to be as strong as Heero had been. It took the doctor until now to complete Relena's Gundam and wipe her mind of her fears and inhibitions, much like what he had done with Heero. In order to be less recognizable, Relena adopted the name Michelle Wong, cropped her hair and dyed it black. She even went as far as to wear contact that changed her eye color to a muted gray. Her Gundam, Fyreblade, was truly Dr. J's masterpiece. Borrowing some of Dr. G's ideas from Deathscythe, the Mercurius shield, and Wing Zero's dual-buster rifle, Dr. J had created on of the most elaborate machines in history. Fyreblade, looking much like the Gundam Epyon, had an unequalled speed thanks to it's lightweight design. In the Gundam's wings lay booster jets that allowed for quick maneuvers and provided the Gundam with unmatched agility. Fyreblade's main weapon was a double thermal blade scythe which was easily stowed in a magnetic compartment on it's back. This scythe would be accompained by the dual-buster rifle from the Gundam Wing Zero which was stowed in a compartment directly behind Fyreblade's head. As with the Mobile Dolls, Fyreblade's energy shields were attatched to its shoulder and an armored shield was attatched to the mobile suit's left wrist. Dr. J even went as far as perfecting the flaw in the Zero system. This new system, known as the ZD or Zero Delta system, did not, like its predecessor, make the pilot hallucinate and go insane. Instead, the pilot's abilities were brought past their limits making whomever piloted a ZD-controlled cockpit the ultimate pilot. Relena, rather Michelle, had taken her new duties quite seriously and quickly became a well-known figure of the colonies' defensive line.

As Duo returned Deathscythe Hell to its hangar beneath his home, he surveyed his surroundings. The tall skyscrapers of the colony's metropolis were in sharp contrast to the simple wodden shack which the God of Death now called his home. A simple wood plank fence surrounded the dirt lot as if it wastrying to keep away the world's prying eyes knowing full well how futile its attempt was. In the day of such high-tech surveillance equipment, privacy wasdefinitely an outdated idea; no matter how much people tried to ignore that fact. Despite the lie, Duo Maxwell found the false solitude comforting. It even helped him relax and hebadly needed to unwind today. "Hey Duo!" yelled Hilde from inside the house. She'd seen how distant the Gundam pilot had recently become...more distant than normal...even for him. The burden of the battlefield must have finally taken its toll on the young warrior she assumed. She wanted to always be there for him...even when her presence seemed unnecessary. As he slowly approached the house, Hilde's worries disappeared when she saw his ever-present smile.  
Duo pulled up a chair as he entered the house, his braided brown hair swaying as he turned to face his friend. "Man, what a drag that was. Zechs never seems to want to give up. He used to be fightingfor the colonies, and now that lunatic is fighting the Gundams, theprotectors of the colonies. That Zero system that Treize installed in the Epyon must be worse than Wing Zero's...it warped Zechs' mind. He and that Gundamalone are ten times worse than Romafellerever was."

Hilde listened intently as the man she cared so much for spoke. She knew there was only one way that the conflict between the Gundams and the White Fang would be resolved: Zechs Merquise needed to be assassinated. In her heart, Hilde knew that Duo was probably the most capable of the Gundam pilots outside of Heero Yuy and would be able to complete this dangerous mission. Therefore, Hilde looked Duo straight in the eye and said, "You have to leave. Now!"

"Huh? Why?" asked the bewildered pilot.

In response, Hilde simply stated," You need to rid the colonies of the threat of Zechs and Epyon once and for all."

Duo almost laughed. "Hey...Hilde...Did you hit your head or somethin'? Deathscythe's one tough Gundam but he's no match for Epyon...not right now at least."

Hilde smiled inwardly about how protective Duo was about his Gundam, but he really did need to go to Earth. "I never said you had tofight Epyon, just kill Zechs."

Duo sighed. He didn't like the idea of leaving his home unprotected, butsomething needed to be done and soon. Duo threw his hands up in defeat, "Alright! I'll do it. But I gotta do something first. Duo left Hilde upstairs and went down to Deathscythe's hangar. After exiting the lift that descended directly into the sub-hangar, Duo quickly found the communications terminal and sat down. Speedily punching in his own personal security code, Duo requested a link to someone out in the colonies. He knew only one person would knowthis link's code, so he was sure that this conversation would not be interrupted. When the link had been received, a blonde-haired 17 year old popped onto the viewscreen. Unlike Duo's normal clothes, this person was in formal business clothes...A symbol of his stature.

"Quatre, buddy...how's life on L4?"

The young man looked at his friend with kind eyes. "I'm fine Duo. How are the spare parts I sent you working?"

"Top of the line, man. But that wasn't the reason I called."

"Oh? Why then?"

"Can you and Sandrock watch over L2 for me over the next few days?"

"Um...sure. Why?"

"I'm going to take out Zechs."

Quatre gasped at his friend's response, but after contemplating the idea, only nodded in reply. "Oh, and Quatre?"

"Yes?"

"If you don't hear from me in a week, then keep Hilde safe for me."

Understanding Duo's meaning, Quatre eloquently stated, "I will do my best to care for her and protect her...my friend."

"Well, then I guess it's time to finish this..." With that, Duo ended the link and began preparing Deathscythe Hell for battle.


	2. The Removal of an Obstacle

Milliardo Peacecraft sat in the courtyard of his deceased father's palace in the Cinq Kingdom. He found the solitude the palace provided a very comforting thing and did not leave its grounds unless absolutely necessary; and thanks to Tuberov's Mobile Dolls, that necessity rarely came. After destroying his archrival, the Gundam pilot Heero Yuy, in that climactic battle, Milliardo saved the Earth from a fiery collision with the Libra battleship in his last act of chivalry. After Romafeller's crushing defeat in space, conquering its "World Nation"'s forces on the Earh was simple. Ever since, Milliiardo ruled over the World Nation and had repeatedly attempted to wipe out the remaining Gundams in space with his now endless supply of Mobile Dolls. Despite the hoards of troops he sent to each colony, Milliardo was never able to reclaim outer space. Along with this lack of control, the remains from Libra and the remains of the Mobile Dolls destroyed during the battle with Romafeller had been droppping randomly into Earth's atmosphere. This made incoming threats from space next to impossible to locate. That was why he, Milliardo Peacecraft, the Lightnng Count, was hiding within his father's home like some sniveling coward. Despite controlling Epyon, the strongest Gundam to date, Milliardo was not satisfied. Since defeating Heero, he had been making some modifications to the Zero-like cockpit system used by Epyon. Even though Treize and himself were still at war, Milliardo had to commend the man whom he once considered as a friend on the fine piece of machinery he'd constructed. And now, with the modifications he'd made to the cockpit system, the elder Peacecraft believe he possessed the ultimate weapon.

Milliardo looked up at the night sky to see a shooting star fly by the night sky. He could tell it would be landing nearby...he would tend to it later. The elder Peacecraft started walking towards his bedchambers to catch up on his sleep. Something told him he would be needing it. With one last look behind him in the direction of the fallen meteorite, Milliardo Peacecraft retired for the night.

One hundred kilometers west of the Peacecraft castle, a metal orb glistened in the dim moonlight. As the seconds passed, the cargo door of the small shuttle opened and out stepped Deathscythe Hell. The black Gundam hid in the pitch blackness like a panther stalking its prey. Quickly, the Gundam got its bearings and soared off into the night sky towards the Cinq Kingdom's capital. However, no sooner had he gone anywhere when he was bombarded by enemy fire. Hundreds of Virgo and Taurus Mobile Dolls littered the night sky, their beam cannons ravaging the countryside as they tried to destroy the elusive Gundam. Milliardo had yet another stroke of genius. He had created a modification in the Mobile Doll system to where every Mobile Doll in a given area could be linked together. If one was attacked or found an intruder, the rest could home in on the first MD's signal and come to its aid. This presented anyone who wished to do battle with these Dolls would face unmeasurable odds. This was no problem for Duo, however. The young pilot inside Deathscythe Hell's cockpit only smiled and started wiping out the Mobile Dolls one by one. He knew it would take longer, but he wanted the exercise. As he slowly progressed onward, something became apparent: the Dolls were lessening in number...something had to be wrong.

Milliardo Peacecraft was awakened by the castle alarms as they blared a warning siren throughout the castle halls that an enemy Mobile Suit was approaching. Milliardo scolded himself for not checking that meteorite earlier. After all, he could still have been asleep by now. But no matter, now that he was up he decided to have a little fun and show that Gundam pilot what a TRUE Gundam could do. With this new resolution, he headed towards the castle's hangar...and Epyon.

Duo continually fought the oncoming hoards of Mobile Dolls. It seemed that Zechs' new cockpit system was more annoying than he had anticipated. But now the Dolls were thinning out and he didn't know why...He had only been fighting about half an hour and there were fewer and fewer coming after him each time. He was SURE that Zechs had enough money to produce more Mobile Dolls than THIS! In the middle of his reverie, a purple blur, streaked by Deathscythe Hell as the Mobile Dolls abruptly scattered and left the battlefield.

"Well" thought Duo..."Here comes the moment of truth."

Inside Epyon's cockpit Milliardo Peacecraft smirked. "Well now...if it isn't Duo Maxwell" said the young king. "Do they still refer to you as the GOD OF DEATH, Maxwell?"

Duo smirked back, "Yea, something like that."

"Well I don't think you deserve that title...you are too WEAK."

Duo was on the verge of laughing "Oh...and why is that?"

"Because you are hiding your true nature Maxwell, just like all the OTHER Gundam pilots...I'm going to make you PROVE you deserve that title..." Milliardo smiled slyly "are you UP TO IT?"

"I'm up to ANYTHING you can throw at me."

"Alright then, land your Gundam and exit it. Afterwards we will switch Gundams and if you prove yourself in battle, then you will be worthy of your title...agreed?"

"Hmmph...fine by me...let's get this over with."

The two Gundams landed simultaneously on the ground, their repulsors creating pockets in the tall grass as they landed. Both hatches open as a faint hiss of expelled air fills the night's eerie silence. The two pilots stared each other down as they slowly made their respective ways out to the middle of the grassy meadow where they landed. The elder Peacecraft stared down haughtily at Duo, smirking cockily as he did so. "Well, well. Duo Maxwell, the self-proclaimed God of Death."

"Can it, Zechs. Now what's this little 'test' you have for me?"

"Quite simple, Maxwell. Take Epyon and prove yourself to me in battle. If you do, then we shall duel and see if you truly can do what Heero could not."

At this jab, Duo glared at the elder Peacecraft with loathing in his eyes. "Mission, accepted." With that, he blew past Milliardo to the waiting lift into the Epyon's cockpit. As Duo got settled into the unfamiliar cockpit, Milliardo released the failsafe that kept his Mobile Dolls from targeting his Gundam while in battle. Almost instantly wave after wave of Taurus and Leo Mobile Dolls flew towards Epyon's position. Duo barely had time to blink before he revved the Gundam's engines and flew into his oncoming opponents. He quickly realized that the Epyon's cockpit system was quite advanced. It was giving him data almost one hundred opponents in advance. At the same time it seemed to be giving the best strategies for destroying every Mobile Doll he was facing. The onslaught of information was too much for Duo and he screamed in both agony and anger as the Epyon's massive beam sword flared into existence and decimated the entire first line of Mobile Suits in one swipe. Duo was breathing heavily from the emotional strain that Epyon's cockpit system was putting on his synapses. He couldn't understand how anyone could interpret all this data at once. However, soon his instincts took over and he began weaving in and out of the new line of Taurus Mobile Dolls, their beam canons on continuous fire as they attempted to take down the exceedingly agile Epyon. Duo used the weapon systems of his Mobile Suit to their fullest advantage. As he swiped through a Leo Mobile Suit with his beam sword, he instantly redirected his momentum so that the energy whip attatched to Epyon's other hand flared to life and sliced cleanly through another Leo that tried to aid it's companion. This dangerous ballet went on for another few minutes before Milliardo remotely reinitiated the failsafe and all the Mobile Dolls fled Epyon's position.

Seeing his enemies stop and turn tail, Duo, who at this point was still on a severe adrenaline rush from the battle and the emotional strain that the Epyon's cockpit system put on him, landed the Gundam in the exact same spot it had left before the attack. Milliardo Peacecraft simply smirked at the cockiness implied from that display. He walke towards his Gundam before Epyon's massive beam sword slammed itself blade-first into the ground in front of him. The platinum blonde-haired man looked up at the cockpit, a look of loathing and contempt crossing his features. "Just what do you think you are doing, Maxwell", screamed an angry Peacecraft.

If the young leader had been able to see Duo Maxwell's features at that point, he would've simply run in fear, but he never had the chance. The only warning Epyon's pilot gave was a maniacal cackle and the shout of "The God of Death lives" before the huge blade of Epyon's beam sword engulfs Milliardo Peacecraft in one smooth motion, leaving nothing in its wake. 


End file.
